2013 Tour of Flanders

2013 Tour of Flanders Favorites

The top riders to watch in Sunday’s Flemish monument

whit yost

(Photo by After a strong spring, and a fifth place at Flanders in 2012, Peter Sagan could win his first Ronde. (Wil Matthews))

Sunday’s Tour of Flanders brings the sport’s toughest one-day racers to Belgium for one of cycling’s most prestigious and difficult Classics. The Ronde van Vlaanderen (as it’s affectionately known in Belgium) features more than 250 kilometers and 17 of Belgium’s steepest cobbled “bergs,” including loops that take the riders over the Oude Kwaremont and the Paterberg three times before the race finishes in Oudenaarde. Last year, Tom Boonen became the fourth rider in history to win the Tour of Flanders three times. Here’s a rundown of the riders hoping to defeat him this year.

Peter Sagan (Cannondale Pro Cycling)
After wins in Gent-Wevelgem and Stage 1 of the Three Days of DePanne (a challenging midweek race), Sagan starts Sunday’s Classic as the favorite. While primarily a sprinter during his first few seasons as a professional, Sagan has proven this year he’s capable of winning in a variety of ways on different terrain. That said, a lot of pressure comes with being the favorite. The rest of the peloton will give Sagan a short leash to follow attacks and few riders will want to cooperate with someone they know will beat them in a sprint. If he wants to win, Sagan might have to do it all by himself.

Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack-Leopard)
Before Sagan’s wins last week, Cancellara was the rider being heralded as the man to beat in the Tour of Flanders—and with good reason. The Swiss star won the E3 Harelbeke (a semi-Classic treated as a Flanders dress rehearsal) in dominating fashion. After accelerating away from a select group on the cobbled Oude Kwaremont—a climb the riders will tackle three times Sunday—Cancellara rode the final 35 kilometers by himself to win the race by more than a minute. While impressive, Cancellara’s victory might prove to have been little more than a practice run as the second ascent of the Kwaremont comes 35k from the Ronde finish as well.

Edvald Boasson Hagen (Team Sky)
In an effort to replicate the marginal gains that helped Bradley Wiggins win last year’s Tour de France, Team Sky sent its Classics riders to the Canary Islands for a warm-weather, high-altitude training camp instead of racing them into shape at Paris-Nice or Tirreno-Adriatico. A powerful rider with an above-average finishing kick, Boasson Hagen is one of this deep squad’s best chances to earn Team Sky its first one-day Monument victory—if the Norwegian champion is able to make it over the final ascent of the Paterberg with a small but select group.

Juan Antonio Flecha (Vacansoleil-DCM)
Despite almost ten seasons of cobbled consistency, Flecha has only one victory to show for his efforts: the 2010 Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. But while he’s likely to be overshadowed by the dominance of Sagan and Cancellara, the Spaniard has enjoyed an ideal build-up to the Tour of Flanders and should not be ignored, as he is healthy, experienced, and has a solid team supporting him. If there’s a surprise winner Sunday, it just might be him.